Federal Funding
Streetsblog Basics
Would the New Senate Fuel Tax Deal a Death Blow to the Transport Bill?
Eight Democrats yesterday joined nearly the entire transportation universe, from road-builders to transit advocates, to warn the three Senate authors of a new climate bill against raising gas taxes without using the money for infrastructure. Their message, translated from the often impenetrable language of Washington: Imposing new fuel fees that are not routed to transport projects could torpedo the next long-term federal bill -- which is already on life support.
April 6, 2010
8 Senate Dems Join Industry in a Gas-Tax Warning to Climate Bill’s Authors
As Sens. John Kerry (D-MA), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), and Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) prepare to unveil a new climate change measure that includes a tax on motor fuels, eight of their colleagues are urging the trio not to forget local transportation planning -- and warning that any new gas tax should be used to help pay for a new federal infrastructure bill, not redirected for other purposes.
April 6, 2010
New Survey: 84% of Transit Agencies Facing Fare Hikes, Service Cuts
Budget shortfalls exacerbated by the lingering recession have forced 84 percent of local transit agencies to hike fares, cut service, or begin considering one or both of those options since the beginning of 2009, according to a report released yesterday by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).
April 2, 2010
Rev. Jackson Joins Labor, Enviro Groups in Call for Transit Funding
At a rally yesterday headlined by Rev. Jesse Jackson, a new coalition of labor unions and environmental organizations stood together to demand more funding for transit agencies across the country. With service cuts afflicting bus and train riders in dozens of major cities, the "Keep America Moving" coalition is focused on securing funds to maintain transit service. Their first goal is passing legislation in Congress that would make federal operating aid for transit permanent.
April 1, 2010
Could Gas-Tax Bonds Pay For the Next Federal Transportation Bill?
House infrastructure committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN), facing steep political odds in his push to pass a new six-year federal transportation bill this year, has begun to pitch an outside-the-box solution to the financing shortfall that is still stalling congressional action: Treasury bonds.
April 1, 2010
As Minneapolis Joins NACTO, Oberstar Backs Shift on Transit Operating Aid
At an event in Minneapolis today, House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) announced his support for giving urban transit agencies more flexibility to spend federal transportation formula money on operating -- a change in the current law that has already won the backing of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood but has split the transit industry.
March 30, 2010
Oberstar Stays Optimistic About New Transport Bill in 2010
House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) on Friday renewed his call for action on a new federal infrastructure bill before year's end, using a hearing on the Obama administration's stimulus law to urge passage of long-term legislation as well as a second round of short-term investment in roads, bridges, and rail.
March 29, 2010
Bids for Federal Streetcar Aid Top Available Money by Nearly Tenfold
After announcing $130 million in new streetcar grants in December, the Obama administration received more than $1.1 billion in applications, Federal Transit Administration (FTA) chief Peter Rogoff told lawmakers today -- offering more evidence of the growing local enthusiasm for competitive transportation funding that began with the stimulus law's TIGER grant program.
March 23, 2010
Transit Operating Aid Bill Doesn’t Fly With Major D.C. Transit Group
A burgeoning congressional push to let urban transit agencies tap federal funds for operating their systems is not sitting well with the transit industry's largest D.C. lobbying group, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).
March 23, 2010
Transport Fix to Jobs Bill Would Take $192M From CA, Send $76M to TX
Fixing a disputed provision in the jobs bill that President Obama signed into law yesterday -- as Senate Democratic leaders promised House transportation committee chairman Jim Oberstar (D-MN) following complaints by several members of his panel -- would involve the redistribution of $932 million in funding for two major federal road and rail programs.
March 19, 2010